| Title | Stem cell self-renewal specified by JAK-STAT activation in response to a support cell cue. |
| Publication Type | Journal Article |
| Year of Publication | 2001 |
| Authors | Kiger AA, Jones DL, Schulz C, Rogers MB, Fuller MT |
| Journal | Science (New York, N.Y.) |
| Volume | 294 |
| Issue | 5551 |
| Pagination | 2542-5 |
| Date Published | 2001 Dec 21 |
| ISSN | 0036-8075 |
| Keywords | Animals, Cell Differentiation, Cell Division, Cell Lineage, Cues, DNA-Binding Proteins, Drosophila, Drosophila Proteins, Germ Cells, Glycoproteins, Janus Kinases, Ligands, Male, Mutation, Protein-Tyrosine Kinases, Signal Transduction, Spermatocytes, Spermatogenesis, STAT Transcription Factors, Stem Cells, Testis, Trans-Activators, Transcription Factors |
| Abstract | Stem cells generate many differentiated, short-lived cell types, such as blood, skin, and sperm, throughout adult life. Stem cells maintain a long-term capacity to divide, producing daughter cells that either self-renew or initiate differentiation. Although the surrounding microenvironment or "niche" influences stem cell fate decisions, few signals that emanate from the niche to specify stem cell self-renewal have been identified. Here we demonstrate that the apical hub cells in the Drosophila testis act as a cellular niche that supports stem cell self-renewal. Hub cells express the ligand Unpaired (Upd), which activates the Janus kinase-signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK-STAT) pathway in adjacent germ cells to specify self-renewal and continual maintenance of the germ line stem cell population. |
| DOI | 10.1126/science.1066707 |
| Alternate Journal | Science |